Gates Learjet 25 accident near Newark, New Jersey, March 30, 1983
On March 30, 1983 at about 10:14 am local time, a Gates Learjet 25, registered N51CA, was destroyed in an accident near Newark, New Jersey (Newark Intl airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 30, 1983 · about 10:14 am local time · cases in 1983
- Place
- Newark, New Jersey · Newark Intl · cases near this airport
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Gates Learjet 25 · all 25s on the register
- Registration
- N51CA · registry record · serial 25-30
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT WAS ON A NGT CHECK COURIER FLT. DURING ARRIVAL, THE INDICATED AIRSPEED WAS WELL ABOVE THE LEGAL LIMIT OF 250 KTFOR FLT BELOW 10,000 FT. RWY 4R WAS SELECTED FOR LANDING AFTER THE CREW WERE ADVISED THAT THEIR ORIGINAL CHOICE (RWY 11)WAS NOISE SENSITIVE. THEY WERE ADVISED NOT TO DESCEND BELOW 2000 FT UNTIL ON FINAL APCH. THE TURN TO FINAL WAS COMPLETEDABOUT 1 MI FROM THE RWY AT AN ALT OF APRX 700 FT. A STEEP (5 DEG) FINAL APCH WAS FLOWN WITH AN ESTIMATED 1000 FPM RATE OF DESCENT. ON LANDING, THE ACFT BOUNCED, BANKED/TURNED TO THE RGT, THEN IT HIT THE GROUND, RGT WING 1ST & BURNED. AN EXAM OF THE WRECKAGE REVEALED THE ACFT WAS CONFIGURED WITH THE GEAR EXTENDED, THE FLAPS DOWN 20 DEG & THE SPOILERS RETRACTED. NO EVIDENCE OF A PREIMPACT PART FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION WAS FOUND. THE TRIM WAS SET FOR A HVY RGT WING & THE FUEL SWS WERE SET TO X-FEED FUEL. TOX CHECKS SHOWED THAT BOTH PLTS HAD USED OR BEEN EXPOSED TO MARIJUANA & HAD CO2 IN THEIR BLOOD FROM SMOKING; USE OF MEDICATION (PHENYLPROPANOLAMINE) BY COPLT. EVIDENCE OF PSBL FATIGUE/STRESS TO BOTH.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,100 hours in all; 2,350 in this make and model; 180 in the last 90 days; 4,500 as pilot in command; 1,100 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Unknown (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 15,000 lb
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Ge CJ610-6 (turbojet); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Hughes Charter Air
The flight
- Departed from: MDW Chigago IL at 10:00 am
- Destination: EWR
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 4R, 8,600 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 330° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 9:50 am from EWK, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N51CA on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Learjet 25 23 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Engine: Ge CJ610-6 6 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Newark Liberty International · nearest airport
- Chicago Midway International · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in New Jersey 1,189 since 1982 · 135 in the last ten years
- New Jersey 3,017 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/DCA83AA023.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.